Coordination Chemistry of Gold Catalysts in Solution: A Detailed NMR Study

AbstractCoordination chemistry of gold catalysts bearing eight different ligands [L=PPh3, JohnPhos (L2), Xphos (L3), DTBP, IMes, IPr, dppf, S‐tolBINAP (L8)] has been studied by NMR spectroscopy in solution at room temperature. Cationic or neutral mononuclear complexes LAuX (L=L2, L3, IMes, IPr; X=charged or neutral ligand) underwent simple ligand exchange without giving any higher coordinate complexes. For L2AuX the following ligand strength series was determined: MeOH≪hex‐3‐yne <MeCN≈OTf−≪Me2S<2,6‐lutidine<4‐picoline<CF3CO2−≈DMAP<TMTU<PPh3<OH−≈Cl−. Some heteroligand complexes DTBPAuX exist in solution in equilibrium with the corresponding symmetrical species. Binuclear complexes dppf(AuOTf)2 and S‐tolBINAP(AuOTf)2 showed different behavior in exchange reactions with ligands depending on the ligand strength. Thus, PPh3 causes abstraction of one gold atom to give mononuclear complexes LLAuPPh3+ and (Ph3P)nAu+, but other N and S ligands give ordinary dicationic species LL(AuNu)22+. In reactions with different bases, LAu+ provided new oxonium ions whose chemistry was also studied: (DTBPAu)3O+, (L2Au)2OH+, (L2Au)3O+, (L3Au)2OH+, and (IMesAu)2OH+. Ultimately, format